Monday, December 05, 2011

At Conception? Gingrich Equivocates on Human Life

On Friday, presidential candidate Newt Gingrich explained at length his opinion that human life does NOT begin until implantation (i.e. the zygote/blastocyst attaching to the uterine wall). On Saturday his campaign realized that his diatribe conflicted with the dominant pro-life position (human life begins at fertilization, PRIOR to implantation), and immediately released a brief statement that Gingrich believes that life begins at conception. Such a statement leaves much "wiggle room" for his lengthy Friday statements becauseconceptionis often equated to the point of implantation.

At a book signing in Rock Hill on Friday, GOP presidential candidate Michele Bachmann criticized rival Newt Gingrich over his comments about the beginning of life.

Gingrich told ABC News on Friday that he believes life begins at “successful implantation,” not fertilization.

In a statement, [Michele Bachmann] said, “This, along with his inconsistent record on life, is just one more indication that Newt is not dedicated to protecting the lives of the unborn and doesn’t share the most basic of conservative principles.”

In January, the Minnesota Republican representative co-sponsored the “Life at Conception Act.” It would define life from the moment of fertilization.

In a new statement the Gingrich campaign sent to LifeNews.com over the weekend, the former House Speaker says repeatedly that he believes life begins at conception, that he is pro-life and that he would implement a pro-life agenda immediately after being sown in as president if he becomes the GOP nominee and defeats pro-abortion President Barack Obama.

“As I have stated many times throughout the course of my public life, I believe that human life begins at conception,” Gingrich said in the statement. “I believe that every unborn life is precious, no matter how conceived. I also believe that we should work for the day when there will be no abortions for any reason, and that every unborn child will be welcomed into life and protected by law.”

As LifeNews previously reported, Gingrich told ABC News in an interview that human life begins at implantation rather than conception, which science has established as the starting point for human life.

"I think the question of being implanted is a very big question," Gingrich said. "My friends who have ideological positions that sound good don't then follow through the logic of 'So how many additional potential lives are they talking about? What are they going to do as a practical matter to make this real?'"

He said that "when a woman has a fertilized egg and that's been successfully implanted, that now you're dealing with life." Otherwise, Gingrich noted, "you're going to open up an extraordinary range of very difficult questions."

Conception, by definition, involves "fertilization or implantation or both," so Gingrich's comments over Thanksgiving don't necessarily conflict with the position he stated Friday. But the national movement led by Personhood USA takes the position that a zygote should be given full legal rights at the moment of fertilization.

"If Newt Gingrich believes that life begins at implantation, he is scientifically incorrect," Jennifer Mason, a spokeswoman for Personhood USA, told HuffPost on Friday. "Any human embryology textbook confirms that life begins at the moment of fertilization. From that moment, there is a living, growing, developing human being."